A new £7m fund opens today to help social enterprises survive the pandemic, with grants of up to £75,000 for those in financial difficulties.
While many profit-making businesses have had to make tough decisions due to the economic effects of the coronavirus pandemic, times have been particularly tough for social enterprises. Social enterprises are like normal businesses but with clear social objectives rather than simple profit motives, and that means they tend to have less to work with when sales drop.
The new £7m COVID Social Enterprise Fund has opened today, offering grants of up to £75,000 to social enteprises that have had financial difficulty due to the pandemic. Communities Minister Carál Ní Chuilín has called on Social Enterprises across Northern Ireland to to apply for the scheme, which is open for the next four weeks.
Minister Ní Chuilín said that "The primary intention of the fund is to help Social Enterprises to stabilise and manage cash flows over this difficult period. The aim is to balance the urgency required to prevent closure of Social Enterprises and loss of employment and key services, with the need for effective support to avoid the impacts on people and wider society and preserve a sector which is fit for purpose for the future and I would encourage all Social Enterprises, no matter how big or small, to apply."
Colin Jess, Director of Social Enterprise NI, added: "These funds will provide much needed help and financial assistance to organisations, many of which have yet to avail of any of the previous support schemes provided by the NI Executive. We would like to thank the Department for Communities and Community Finance Ireland for co-designing this scheme with us."
Head over to www.communities-ni.gov.uk/covid-social-enterprise-fund for more information on who is eligible for the programme, or to apply. Applications are open now and will close at 5PM on October 23rd.
Source: Written based on press release
